By VoN Team
India’s Harnaaz Sandhu has been declared Miss Universe 2021. With this India has won the coveted title for the third time. The last time an Indian won the title was 2000, brought home by Lara Dutta. The first Indian to win the crown was Sushmita Sen, in 1994.
Sandhu was crowned by the reigning Miss Universe, Andrea Meza from Mexico. Paraguay’s Nadia Ferreira was the first runner-up, while South Africa’s Lalela Mswane finished the second runner-up.
“Chak de fatte India.” the Chandigarh-born Sandhu screamed in Punjabi after winning the title. Sandhu, a model, represented India at the 70th Miss Universe 2021 which was held in Eilat, Israel. From a pool of 80 contestants, Harnaaz Sandhu advanced in top sixteen, top ten, top five, and then top three before finally winning the Miss Universe 2021 title.
Said she : “I am immensely grateful to the Almighty, my parents, and the Miss India Organization for guiding and supporting me throughout. Loads of love to everyone who prayed and wished the crown for me. Bringing the glorious crown back after 21 years to India is a moment of greatest pride.”
She was asked : “What advice would you give to young women watching on how to deal with the pressures they face today?”
Harnaaz answered : “The biggest pressure the youth of today is facing is to believe in themselves. To know that you are unique makes you beautiful. Stop comparing yourselves with others and let’s talk about more important things that are happening worldwide. This is what you need to understand. Come out; speak for yourself, because you are the leader of your life. You are the voice of your own. I believed in myself and that is why I am standing here today.”
“Chak de fatte India.” the Chandigarh-born Sandhu screamed in Punjabi after winning the title. Sandhu, a model, represented India at the 70th Miss Universe 2021 which was held in Eilat
Before this, Harnaaz was crowned Femina Miss India Punjab 2019 and Miss Diva Universe 2021. She also worked in Punjabi films such as ‘Yaara Diyan Poo Baran’ and ‘Bai Ji Kuttange’.
Here are some of her vital statistics and other important details:
Born : March 3, 2000 in Chandigarh.
Parents : A Sikh family. Her father Paramjit Singh Sandhu is a realtor and her mother Paramjit Singh Sandhu is a gynaecologist.
Schooling : Shivalik Public School, Chandigarh, and the Post Graduate Government College for Girls, Chandigarh.
Personal : During her teenage years Sandhu was bullied for being too thin. She also describes herself as an introvert.
Opinion : “I think I have overcome that by believing in my strength and by believing that every individual is unique and that what makes them different. It was all possible because of my mom’s support. She has always been my hero and made me believe in my strength. My family plays a significant role in my worst stage. If I’m able to sit here and talk about myself with confidence, it’s all because of my family.”
Pageantry: Harnaaz Sandhu began her pageantry career at the age of 17 and won titles such as Miss Chandigarh 2017 and Miss Max Emerging Star India 2018. She won Femina Miss India Punjab 2019 and was placed in Top 12 in Femina Miss India the same year.
Political opinion : The Village of Kohali in Gurdaspur district got together to celebrate when it heard that its daughter Harnaaz Kaur Sandhu had been crowned Miss Universe at the beauty pageant finale in Israel.
Although Harnaaz’s parents shifted to Mohali for the education of their children many years ago, the family continues to frequent its ancestral village. Villagers say soon after Harnaaz won a beauty pageant early this year when she secured the title of Miss Diva Universe 2021 which led her to the Miss Universe pageant, she visited Kohali and even posed on a tractor to express solidarity with farmer’s movement at Delhi borders.
While Harnaaz did not herself write any comment on the farm agitation on her twitter account, she shared the tweets of Greta Thunberg and Rihanna in support of the agitation in February this year.
